Chavez legacy lives on in Venezuela ballet

State-sponsored play traces late leader's journey from humble sweet seller to champion of Bolivarian revolution.

29 Nov 2014 06:58 GMT

Nearly two years after his death, former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez still looms large in public life. A ballet based on Chavez's life is the latest in what some critics are calling a government propaganda.

Maria Rossell, the ballet's director, denies the charge. "For us it's important, it's part of the message we are giving, that this is a ballet, a political ballet, but a ballet with an aesthetic proposal. It is a work of art, not a brochure," she said.